Entries in llas vegas history (5)

Preservation Spotlight: Brian Paco Alvarez

Brian "Paco" Alvarez is one of those guys that everyone seems to know. Mention his name to a group of people, and the chances are pretty good that someone in the group knows Paco. Paco is a native son, born and raised. He has lived Downtown for many years and has been extolling the advantages of Downtown life and the history of Downtown for twice as long. He has worked at the the Liberace Foundation, the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, the Neon Museum,  the Las Vegas News Bureau  and now is working at Zappos .

He has curated various exhibits on the history of Las Vegas, can be found at gallery openings, museum galas and all around town where ever history and preservation are being discussed.

Despite his busy schedule, he carved out some time to talk about two of his favorite subjects- history and preservation in Las Vegas.

CLV Blog: How did you become interested in Las Vegas history?

 Alvarez: I have always loved history and have been fascinated for what came before. Though I will be honest I never thought that I would follow a career in the field. My degree is in Anthropology with an emphasis in Museum Studies so it was natural for me to go into the museum field and work more on the technical side of the field. But it was in the museum world that solidified my penchant for history

 

You can read more at our blog: ClassicLasVegasBlog.com

Preservation Spotlight: Dr. Michael Green, historian

 

Today's Preservation Spotlight shines on Dr. Michael Green, historian!

We had a great time talking with Dr. Mike about Las Vegas history, especially the Mob!

"But my favorite, I think, is the history of organized crime here.  I am very involved with the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement (The Mob Museum), and I have learned a lot working on that.  It’s a fascinating story that takes into account everything from ethnicity to the power of the state (both the nation-state and the state of Nevada).  It’s just a marvelously broad and interesting topic."

Read the entire interview at ClassicLasVegasBlog.com

Help save the Huntridge Theater

 

The Huntridge Theater may be the most beloved historic landmark in Las Vegas. But over the last decade, the community that loves it has watched it helplessly fall into a seeming final state of disrepair.  We plan to bring this Theatre back to all its glory and more, and make it once again Las Vegas' favorite venue for performing arts and community programming.

 

We want to end this madness, and bring The Huntridge back for the people that love it. 

Members of the downtown Vegas business community who are behind this effort recognize that many attempts to do this have failed despite concerted efforts and massive, long-term community support, and this might be the last shot to save it (covenants on the property expire in 2017). But the tools for organizing community engagement and support have evolved so much, so quickly -- we can do this.

Even if we raise this campaign’s full amount and end up with $150,000 or more, that’s obviously not even close to enough to buy, lovingly renovate, and reopen the Huntridge.

But! It will prove that community support exists to justify much larger private investment in a project that is motivated more by passion than just profits. Buying the Huntridge and renovating it could cost up to $15 million, so if we can show interested investors how much the community still cares about the Huntridge by raising the first 1% of the money from its fans, and in doing so pass smaller initial financial hurdles that are beyond our personal means, we are confident that this show of community support will preface a beautiful revival of the greatest music and arts venue Vegas has ever known.

Nostalgic Huntridge-lovers of all stripes, this is where you come in: Help us prove that community support is there, by funding the important pre-work of this iconic revival project!!!

 

What do we need the money for?

We extended all our financial resources to come up with the first $60k for the non-refundable deposit and appraisals to make this process possible. The next chunk of deposit ($50k) is due immediately after this campaign ends, and we have an estimated $100k of required costs before we can start bringing in (already very interested) private investors for the project. These costs include remediation due diligence, environmental certifications, appraisals, legal work, renovation design work and marketing materials, etc, all by the end of the summer. These start-up costs would normally be much more for a project of this magnitude, but we expect that we'll be able to get it all done very efficiently thanks to many tentative offers we've received to volunteer professional services.  Estimated costs are as follows:

$20k - Due Diligence / Feasibility Studies  

$15k - Marketing / Web Development / Admin

$50k - Architectural / Design / Engineering

$15k - Inspections / Appraisals / admin

$50k - Second Deposit

$150k Total Start-up Capital Required

 

Who are you? 

This IndieGoGo campaign was initiated by The Huntridge Revival, LLC, which was founded by Downtown Las Vegas community members Joey Vanas, Michael Cornthwaite, and Rehan Choudhry, and adopted by members of #startupblock, a group of tech entrepreneurs living near The Huntridge.

 

Are contributions tax-deductible?

No, Huntridge Revival is an LLC because this campaign is only a necessary first step towards raising up to $15MM in total investment and it needs to also attract private investors and be able to show returns.  Because it is not a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization contributions are not tax-deductible.  To avoid ever rehashing its current fate if we do nothing, the Huntridge does need to sustain itself financially once reopened (while keeping ticket and food and beverage costs affordable). 

More details about the campaign and the Huntridge can be found at Save.TheHuntridge.com!

 

New episode of Vegas this Tuesday night!

There's a new episode of Vegas on Tuesday night (maybe the last new episode until January?)

We'll have our review/recap as always!

Posted on Sunday, December 9, 2012 at 1:53PM by Registered CommenterLasVegasLynn in , , | CommentsPost a Comment

LA Times Discovers Ralph Lamb

Just in time for the new show, Vegas, a dramatic series on CBS this fall, the LA Times profiles Sheriff (he will always be sheriff to us though he hasn't worn the badge in over thirty five years) Ralph Lamb. In the new series, Ralph will be portrayed by Dennis Quaid and the series will focus on the fictional battle between Lamb and Vincent Savino (Michael Chiklis) while exploring the oasis in the desert as it was in the 1960s (at least we hope they do).

Back then, Las Vegas and Sheriff Lamb didn't rate high enough to be profiled by the LA Times but fifty years later, it's a whole different story:

 

 

 

From the LA Times:

LAS VEGAS — The first thing you notice about Sheriff Ralph Lamb is that voice — the low, gravelly growl of a former five-pack-a-day Marlboro man. Even at age 85, Lamb still uses the plain-spoken utterances of an old-school lawman.

On his disdain of firearms: "Sometimes we had to use our guns, but sparingly. If a guy shot at me, I'd shoot back."

And on his public image: "The church-goin' people in town, the good people, they liked my brand of law and order — keepin' things cleaned up."

He was known as the Cowboy Sheriff and once was considered the most powerful man in Nevada. In the 1960s and '70s, the longtime rancher and rodeo rider served as the sheriff of Clark County — which back then was about the closest thing America had to the Old West, with gangsters substituting for gunslinging cowboys.

 

For more:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-vegas-sheriff-20120720,0,7911575.story

Posted on Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 1:11PM by Registered CommenterLasVegasLynn in | CommentsPost a Comment